Yo. The day was appointed when Benito would leave on a freight train. And that was all well and good. Ivana would accompany him on that day and it would be a splendid affair, for he was headed to see Ljubitsa in her "mountain home". Benito woke up on the appointed day and it wasn't raining, but it was certainly a cloudy one, and that was all well and good, for this was the day that Benito would be leaving on a freight train. He solemnly packed his stuff and bid adieu to his Serbian "sisters". And that was all well and good. Ivana came back just in time to help Benito with his packing and to give a last final tutorial to her student at the apartment. It was quite a splendid affair, eating cake again for another day in a row. The lesson progressed and they ate some more cake and coffee and that was all well and good. There was a conversation in English between the Serbian student, Ivana, and Benito which ended nicely enough. Then was time for discussion about the bed, which somehow had broken. One way or another, Benito was paying up, so pay up he did, even though a new piece of furniture might have been nice. He left virtually all of his American money, save for the $20 bill in the back of his German dictionary, to the "fund" on the dresser. No matter, Benito was soon extracting more funds from the nearby ATM as the cabby waited nearby. Ivana was also there and made sure to retrieve Benito's leather jacket which he had left behind, then they were off. The traffic was unreal!! Bentio just blew his nose, finding the stash of tissues in his jacket. That was all well and good, but what he really needed at the moment was a Big-Mac. Haha. There were plenty of those in Belgrade, he knew. But no matter for the day had come for him to depart the premises of Belgrade and head to the mountains. Arriving at the bus stop, the cabbie said he was worried on Benito's behalf, but no matter, for they had gotten there in fairly good order and there were still people boarding the bus. Benito rushed to make it on in time, Ivana leading the way until they got to the gate where she ushered Benito through, then told him to follow her to the appointed bus and handed him his jackets at which point he was paying up again to store his stuff underneath the bus, but no matter, at least he had the right bus! They all looked at Benito as if he didn't have his head completely screwed on right. but no matter, he had found the right bus! Soon, they were off, and Benito was astounded that there was no public toilet on the bus. Oh, my! Oh, well.
Benito had been planning to read on the way, but he really needed to use the toilet, so he just bit and held it, watching as they crossed several bridges and went through several small little towns, wondering which woud be the right one? Loznica. Just over the next horizon. He considered striking up a conversation with the ladies sitting across from him, but they were lost under their IPods, so contact seemed unlikely. But no matter, at least he was on the right bus. He turned to have a look at the kids sitting in back. They were no doubt enjoying themselves. Another fellow was snoozing behind the ladies sitting next to Benito. And the man in front of them was reading a magazine with pictures of Ana Ivanovic: so hot! Well, at least it wasn't a Playboy mag! There were a lot of those being sold in Belgrade as well. But Benito had paid no heed, nor any money. Now he was headed far away from Belgrade, but soon to return. That much was certain. Where they were going exactly at that moment was a mystery to Benito at the moment but no matter, for at least he was on the right bus. He considered asking the bus driver to stop so that he could relieve himself, but he figured he could hold it for a maximum of two hours. Well, two hours came and went, and still they had not yet arrived in Loznica. He thought he might have seen a sign for it, as many people, one by one, were disembarking from the bus and going to their respective destinations. But not Benito. He figured that he would stay on until the bitter end. Now if only his bladder could go the distance! Two hours came and went and still no end in sight. Benito considered his options: he could pee into a cup, ask the bus driver to stop so he could relieve himself, or just hold on for a few more minutes, however long that was! But no matter, at least he was on the right bus. And sure enough the sign came for Loznica proper and Benito thought he could hold on a little longer. He switched seats in that moment and made eye motions as if to indicate to the bus driver that he was indeed in need. Finally, they arrived and the next thing he knew, Ljubica was on the bus with him, helping him to get his things.
The adventure did not end there, however, for Benito still needed to use the bathroom. So they headed into the nearest facility, which was the bus station where they found a bunch of little bars. They followed the signs to the bottom of the stairs, but the WC was all locked up. So much for that idea! Well, they woud contend with the odds. Luckily enough, Ljubica spotted one of her good friends (Milosh!) who was in turn a friend of the bartendress in one of the mini-bars. There was no light and the toilet was situated in such a position that Benito had to pee from the side of the pot. No matter, he had night-vision and besides, was used to it, for he had had to use the sink to wash his hands in New Belgrade in the apartment and because there was water on the floor, he had had to lean in from the side sort of awkwardly, so as to avoid the water on the floor from the previous shower. If he could manage that, he could manage using a toilet at odd angles in the dark! Kind of a dark night of the soul, or at least, a dark night in the toilet! Upon finishing, there was no soap, but Benito was glad just to have had a toilet to use, and so they continued on their merry way, for to find the house in the mountains! What a grand time it was. When Benito got there with Ljubica and company, the mother greeted him at the gate and took him by the hand in such a gentle manner. That was all well and good, for he had had a long day of travel and was ready for bed. So that was that. And the next day was utorak and they went by themselves with the help of Namania to Trsic.
It was all very timely indeed as they came past the well with the water from the monastery. Holy water, indeed!
And that was how the Serbian cookie crumbled. It was a kind of museum really with nice streams and bridges and all manner of little houses. It was rather like the hobbits from the tales of Tolkien. but no matter, they were there at least. And walk they did past this and that place, first going to the church, which was quite splendid indeed! Benito signed his name in the book in Cyrillics and Ljuby was quite impressed with this achievement. Then they all danced to Thriller. No, it just looked like a graveyard, that is all. 
Continuing along, they came to another bridge with a little gate and a woman which Ljuby knew was there in the gift shop to greet them. She was about to close, but they were welcome to go and take a look at the house. So go and sit under that old tree they did, stopping to eat an orange and some chocolate. Benito yawned for he was tired. Then he proposed to write some poetry under that old tree, as it rained lightly down, and the streams winded their way. One could hear the sound of the stream from a distance at that time. Then they came to bridge which was of Turkish origin. And that was well and good. They went for a little while further, then turned back, promising to return one day for shish-kabobs. That will be quite a time and so they did return on New Year's Day. but first, they stopped at the little restaurant for a little dinner and tried a hand at the "gusle", a Montenigrian instrument. That was all well and good. They sat by the fire and Benito had a Heineken, remembering his good times in Western Europe. haha. Well, there would be many more times to come. And so they celebrated the night away and then ate some more potatoes and that was that. Oh, and Ljubica knew everyone that they met, as it is such a small town! hahaha. Well, she knows a lot of people. Then they observed this corn grinder for a time, after being offered to drink Rakkia. 
Then they walked back home in the dark under the full mooon, Benito stopping for a time to look at the stars (maybe there was Danica... hahaha!) and the town around.
So ended Day 1 in Loznica, with many more adventures and exciting times to come! Please stay tuned for New Year's is just around the corner. Peace, Benito. PS Oh yeah, they went to the hospitol for to get some meds, and Benito didn't have his insurance on him, but he didn't need any, just a little cash. And the doctor was very good, from Pakistan, and they all rejoiced for Benito would get better again but he stayed in bed for all of Wednesday and then it was New Year's Eve
Then it was time to go hiking. So they all put on their hiking boots and went to Trsic, for to enjoy the atmosphere. This time there were loggers in the forest and they passed them by on the way. Benito himself had to go toilet and held on to Ljubica's hand at the same time, but enough for the trivial stuff.
For Mili was playing her disk-jockey on the way up, and Benito would get a similar idea later on... But for now, he was content to make it to the top of the mountain and toast fate that never a happier day was ever wasted there! And they were served free drinks on top by a man named Budda. Yes, kind of like 'Buddha', but in any event, he was a laughing, congenial sort of fellow and Ljubica was like, "See what kind of people we have here in Serbia!" And Benito believed her. Thus ended their New Year's Trek. And the preshow took place at a Monastery, at which Jovan would go often, and Benito met this priest-to-be at Ljubica's house and shook his hand. Thus did he continue along on his journey.
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